Sheet-smoothing device



Aug. 2E, i923. lASB@ J. WHITE SHEET SMOOTHING DEVICE Filed Oct. l1r 1919 Patented Aug.. 2l, i923.

entre raras retenir ora-ree.

intatte JOSEPH WHITE, OF MIDDLESEX, NEW JERSEY; MINNIE E. WHITE ADMINISTRATRIX F SAID JOSEPH WHITE, DECEASED,' ASSIGNOR TO HALL PRINTING PRESS COM- PNY, OF DUNELLEN, NEW JERSEY, A. CORPORATION OF NEW JERSEY.

SHEET-SMOOTHING DEVICE.

Application med' rOctober 11, 1919. Serial No. 330,024.

To all whom t may concer/L:

Be it known that I, JOSEPHWHITE, a citizen of the United States, residing at Middlesex, in the State ofNew Jersey, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Sheet-Smoothing Devices, of which the following is a specication. .l Y

My present invention relates to devices particularly useful in printing presses by which asheet may be smoothedout so as to be presented in an unwrinkled condition to a printing surface, and 'also so that such smoothingout may be accomplished at different' stages in the progress of the sheet through' the press.

With these and other objects in view, my invention consists of certain novel features of construction, combination and arran ement of parts as will, be more fully eserib'ed and pointed out in the appended claims.

In the drawin s, Figure 1 is a sectional side elevation 4o an illustrative form of printing press in connection with which the preferred form of my vinvention is shown,

and Fig, 2 is adetail.

The corresponding parts are referred to both in the specication and in the drawin by similar reference characters.

he ress which I have chosen for purposes ofY illustration is a multi-color offset press of- 'the type illustrated in my prior Patent No. 1,214,485, in which there is an impression cylinder and a pair of cooperating printing' or` blanket cylinders 11 and l2 spaced apart a sufficient distance so that the sheet may be completely printed by the cylinder 11 before it reaches the cylinder 12, anda pair of form cylinders 13, y11i each cooperating with one,` of the printing cylinders l1, 12. The impression cylinder 10 is provided with the Ausual sheet grippersl and an impression surface 16.

rlhe press is rovided with a feed cylinder 17 having grip ers 18 to take a sheet from a lsheet support which, in the form illustrated, is made up of a series of tapes 19 which carry a sheet placed thereon, down to the feeding point of the cylinder 17 where the grippers 18 close thereon. The sheet is then carried around to present the head thereof to the grippers on the cylinder 10, and the sheet is carried by thegrippers 15 past the printing cylinders ,-11 and 12 to a delivery mechanism of the usual type, shown at the left of Figure 1. All of the cylinders aregeared together and are rotating contin- .uously in the illustrative type of machine. The .mechanismso far described is old in the art and further description will there- Vfore be unnecessary to those skilled in the art. n Particularly in planographic printing, it 1s desirable that all of the minute wrinkles vshall `be smoothed out of the sheet before it is printed, and when the sheet is to be printed 1n more than one color it is particularly desirable that the sheet be made to lie as flat lateral pulls, all of such pulls being direct? ed so that the sheet is stretched and smoothed over .the cylinder surface.

As one simple form of device to smooth the sheet, I provide one or more rollers 20, 21 and 22, each of which preferably is covered with a fabric 20 lso as to give a rela-l tively rigid'frictional contact with the sheet to exert a considerable pull thereon. Preferably, also, in `order to provide opposed lateral pulls on the sheet, I apply such fabric in the manner shown in Figure 2 in the frm of spirals with the spirals on the' opposite ends of. the 'rollers of opposite hands. The roller 20 initially smooths the sheet while under. the cont-rol of the grippers 18 and indeed, while also under the control of the grippers 15 until the tail of the sheet passes theroller 20. The roller 21 further smooths the sheet on the surface 16 prior to therpassage of the sheet beneath the printing cyf inderl 1l. It will be understood that these rollers are set suliiciently tightly in contactwith the surfaces of the cylinders vand are themselves 'made to drag over 'the sheet, so that as the sheet is moved past them these rellers tendv to drag the sheet backward, and when provided with such a structure as that shown in Figure 2. to also as possible when the successive colors are imposed;y otherwise the printing may be lout smooth the sheet outwardly fromits center,- thus effectually ironing out any Wrinkles i and causing the sheet to adhere tightly and smoothly to the cylinder surface..

If desired, I may also provide a smooth ing device for the sheet to act thereon between the first and the second printing, and

of such mechanism I have shown grppers- 25 on a shaft 26 mounted in a pair of arms `27 pivoted at 28 on the-cylinder 10. The

grippers25 are controlled by a pair of segments 29, 30, the latter of which is pivoted at 31 on the arm 27, and is provided With a cam roller 32 contacting with. a cam 33 attachedto the side frame ofthe machine. The grrippers 25 are closed by the spring 34.

The position of the arms 27 is controlled by a cam roller 35 running on a 4cam 36fal'so attached to the side frame and a spring` 37 yInj the machine illustrated, the grippers 25 are arranged to close on the tail of the sheet after the sheet has begun to pass the printing cylinder 11, such closing being brought about by the roller 32 running down the cam 33. Shortly after this closing, the r'oller 35 runs down the cam 36 and this permits the spring 3T, to move the arms 27 clockwise, and sincethe sheet is gripped at this time, this motion will pull or stretch the sheet on the surface 16. It is obvious that this stretching may take place atany-time after the head of the sheet has been lgrasped by the grippers 15, but, as shown in the drawings, this device will prevent the ivrinkling. of the sheet which now sometimes arises because of the stretching action on the sheet due to the pulling thereof between the impression surface 16 and the offset blanket on the printing cylinder 11. If'this stretching is taken up as by the grippers25, as soon as'it arises, there Will obviously be no ivrinklingof the sheet, and the sheet will be passed to the second impression in exactly the same condition in which it 'was printed by the cylinder 11. If, on the other hand, the sheet is permitted to stretch freely during the printing of the first impression and is not thereafter restrained, it Will return to its original condition as soon as released by the cylinder 11 and Will therefore' be presented to the cylinder 12 in a condition different from that in which it left the cylinder 11, thus causingoutof-register printinnl on some or all ofthe sheet.

While I have shown my invention in connection with an ofiset press-in which it 1sparticularly useful, it will be understood that it may be used in connection with any form of press or indeed, With any machine in which it is desirable to smooth 011i 21 Sheet prior toits being operated on.A

1.1 In Va.printing press, a cylinder having /aQneet-taking device there-on adapted to engage the head of the sheet, and a fabric-cov-V ered roller adapted to press the sheet against the periphery of the cylinder as the sheet is drawn past said roller, said fabric covering` comprising;- a pair of opposed spiral strips arranged to exert lateralpulls on the sheet from its center `tow-1rd its edges.

In a printing press. a c if'linder having a sheetftalrin.;T device thereon adapted to engage the head of the sheet, and a fabric-coxvh ered roller adapted to press the sheet against the periphery of the cylinder as the sheetV JOSEPH WHITE. 

